Aluminium foil is really useful in daily life
There’s aluminum foil in one form or another in almost every household in the country. Whether it’s foil pie plates, oven liners, barbecue dishes, or a roll of foil, there’s probably some in your home too. We’ve found twenty-six uses for it, some of which you probably hadn’t thought of.
1 Clean the iron
A scrunched-up ball of foil is the perfect scourer to use on the base of your iron.
Just remember not to scrub too enthusiastically or too often or you may scratch the base plate. It’ll get rid of all those sticky burnt-on bits. No need to purchase a new iron when you can make your old one look as good as new with this trick.
2 Throw away cooking fat
If you’ve cooked something that has a lot of oil floating on top, line a bowl with some aluminum foil and pour the oil into there.
Then close it all up and throw it in the trash. This is much better than pouring it all down the drain and clogging up your pipes.
3 Whiten your teeth
Our teeth often get stained from drinking coffee, tea and red wine. Remove these stains by mixing some baking soda and toothpaste together.
Spread it thickly onto a strip of aluminum foil. Place the strip across your teeth and leave it for an hour. Remove the strip, brush your teeth and all the stains will be gone. Well worth the investment of time, we promise. You’ll also save money next time you go to the dentist.
4 Protect your doorknobs
When you’re painting doors and you don’t want to remove the doorknobs, simply cover them with foil.
This is easier than using tape and will protect the handle from paint splatters. You’ll save a lot of energy in the process, since it will only take about 5 seconds to remove, as opposed to tape.
5 Soften brown sugar
Sometimes brown sugar goes hard when it’s been in the kitchen cupboard for too long. Remove the sugar lump from the container, place it in a square of foil and put it in a moderate oven for a few minutes.
The sugar will soften, and the grains will separate. Just don’t leave it in the oven for too long or you’ll have toffee!
6 Keep that sleeping bag dry
Sleeping bags can become horribly clammy at night because they don’t “breathe” as other fabrics do. Also, moisture from the ground can accumulate underneath them. Keep dry and comfortable by laying a long strip of foil down on the ground and putting your sleeping bag on top.
It will insulate the bag from the cold ground and stop extra moisture from accumulating. A good night’s sleep when camping is possible! You can reuse your aluminum foil next time you go camping. This way, you can avoid spending money on a costly insulated matress.
7 Keep bananas fresh
Wrapping bananas in foil stops them from turning black too fast. You don’t have to wrap up the entire bunch, just wrap the stalk end and this will improve the shelf life.
It works by preventing the ethylene “ripening” gas from being released from the stems.
8 Make ironing less of a chore
When you’re ironing, place a sheet of foil over the ironing board first. This layer under the clothes will heat up quickly from the iron and will iron your clothes from the back while you iron the top.
Your clothes will be wrinkle-free in half the time. Being time and energy sufficient has never been that easy!
9 Sharpen your scissors
If your scissors are blunt or rusty, simply cut through some foil about ten times.
This will clean and sharpen the blades at the same time. No need to purchase a new pair with that trick.
10 Prop up your batteries
Sometimes the springs in flashlights and toys that hold the batteries in become stretched. This makes it difficult for the device to work.
Solve this problem quickly and easily by folding a piece of foil into a small square to make a pad for between the battery and the spring, taking up the extra space. This will help to hold the batteries in place but still allow the current to move. No need to hold a college degree in science for this trick!
11 Prevent clothing static
Clothes dried in a dryer machine can develop static if not washed with fabric softener.
To eliminate static, put a small ball of foil into the dryer with the clothes.
12 Improve radiator efficiency
To make your heaters more energy-efficient, cover some cardboard with foil to make a “mirror”.
Turn the shiny side towards the heat so the heat bounces off it into the room. You’ll get far more heat into the room that way, using the same amount of electricity.
13 Clean silverware
Silverware becomes dull and tarnished after a time. To restore the shine, line your sink with some aluminum foil. Put in some boiling water with a handful of baking soda and salt.
Soak the silverware in this for several hours, then rinse. Your silver will be shiny as new again.
14 Remove rust from chrome surfaces
Make a ball of aluminum foil that’s big enough to fit comfortably in your hand.
Scour the rusty surface with it and the rust will come off in no time. Do this from time to time, and especially before you plan to sell your car. It will be easier to attrack buyers if you don’t have rust on your rims.
15 Make a touchscreen pen
We’ll bet you didn’t know that touchscreens respond to aluminum foil. Take an ordinary ballpoint pen and cover it with foil to make an improvised touchscreen pen.
If you need touchscreen gloves, take a pair of normal gloves and add foil to the fingertip region.
16 Incubate seeds
As we know by now, aluminum foil is an excellent insulator. To give your seeds a head start, make a “hotbox” to grow them in. Line a shoebox with foil, shiny side outwards.
Make some drainage holes at the bottom and half fill the box with soil. Put the box in a sunny spot. The foil will absorb heat and reflect light onto the seedlings too.
17 Keep your oven clean
Who enjoys cleaning a dirty oven? Nobody, we bet. Put a layer of foil on the base of your oven to catch any overflows and splatters.
It will also help to distribute heat evenly and prevent food from burning so easily. When it’s dirty, you can simply scrunch it up and throw it away.
18 Clean the barbecue grill
Those wire brushes that people often use to scrub the grill aren’t recommended. The pins come out and sick on the grill where they can get onto your food.
Instead, make a ball of aluminum foil and use this with soap and water to scrub the grill. Throw it away when you’re done.
19 Protect your hair when curling it
Protect your hair from heat damage yet still create beautiful soft curls.
Wrap a piece of foil around your curling iron. Now your hair won’t burn as easily.
20 Keep food warm
If you like warm food at your picnics, simply wrap it in foil. Foods like toasted sandwiches, pies and bread will stay warm for hours this way.
Be careful not to keep meat products warm for too long in case of spoilage.
21 Clean glass dishes
Grime on glass oven dishes is difficult to remove.
Shine them up with a ball of aluminum foil. Save yourself plenty of time and energy in the process.
22 Line paint roller trays
Paint roller trays are awful to wash after use. Simply line them with foil before pouring in the paint and you won’t have to wash them at all.
When you’re ready to clean up, scrunch up the foil with the paint side inwards and throw it away. Wrapping your brush in foil will stop the paint going hard on it too.
23 Remove nail polish
Soak cotton balls in nail polish remover, place one on each nail and cover them with foil.
This will remove the polish quickly and easily.
24 Clean burnt food from pans
Have you ever burned food while trying to cook it? If so, you know how difficult it is to clean your stove afterward!
Before you throw away that burnt pan, try gently scrubbing it with a foil ball and dishwasher detergent.
25 Seal plastic bags
Have you run out of Ziploc bags? To seal an ordinary plastic bag, fold aluminum foil over the top ends that you want to seal. Run a hot iron over them.
The iron will stick the plastic bag together, but the foil will prevent any plastic from getting onto the iron and elsewhere
26 Protect your stove
There’s no need to clean dirty drip pans ever again. Cover them with tin foil.
When it’s dirty, throw it away and replace it with fresh foil. Well worth investing the time in making these, we promise.
